Homestead Roofing and Its Prized Truck Turn 80 Years Old

You may have seen the classic cars roaring through the village last weekend, but perhaps the most known classic car in the village was conspicuously absent. That's right, there was no 1930 orange and yellow Homestead Roofing pickup truck along E. Ridgewood Ave for the classic car show. Still sparkling in mint condition, it watches over the construction corridor known as Goffle Road where the business, which does commercial and residential roofing, along with gutters, window installations, and vinyl siding, is located.

So why didn't the truck show for the classic car show? Well, you could understand why Homestead would be wary to send out its flagship 1930 Ford given its strange and perhaps funny history.

"We are still trying to recover from our first experience at being in the [4th of July] parade," said Eileen Cawley of Homestead Roofing, who's husband Jerry Cawley Jr. runs operations and owns the business. (His father, Jerry Sr., owned the Ridgewood business for years before selling it to his son three years ago.)

About twelve years ago, the truck was about 1/2 mile into the parade and carrying a few of Ridgewood's local governing officials when it overheated, Eileen Cawley said.

Everyone then lept out of the truck and Homestead recruited a couple of parade-goers to help push it into the parking lot of Graydon Pond in the belief that it would be a safe location until the vehicle could be towed.

Unfortunately, the vehicle was pushed into the drop zone for the fireworks show, and was towed to a garage in Waldwick.

"Obviously, we were surprised the next morning when the truck was gone! We do hope to retry our parade efforts one of these years," Eileen Cawley said.

A car, a company share a birthday

While you may not see the truck in the parade, it is front-and-center on Goffle Road, an area where Wyckoff, Midland Park, Glen Rock, Hawthorne and Ridgewood all converge. Despite being nowhere near the Central Business District of Ridgewood, due to the company's longevity, it has overcome geographic constraints – it is known as a Ridgewood business, owner Jerry Cawley Jr. said.

"Our reputation is what keeps our business going all these years," he said.

If you happen to spot the haulin' beauty out in town or at their spot on Goffle, you may notice on the side panel that it says "1930".

The explanation is simple: the car isn't merely celebrating its 80th birthday; it also happens to be Homestead's 80th year in business, making it one of the oldest businesses in the village (Hillman's Electric hit the century mark this year, too).

Homestead opened shop in 1930 on Maple Avenue in Ridgewood, then with just a few employees and a few trucks. As the business grew, it moved to the present location on Goffle Road, on the outskirts of Ridgewood, in 1955. It has gone through quite a few changes through the years, including purchasing the first seamless gutter machine in Northern New Jersey back in the early '60s.

While the business has seen the quite a bit of change, so too has the truck so intertwined into its history.

"Our crew was working on a garage roof in Paramus many years ago. They were replacing bad wood and noticed an old pickup truck that was in the garage," said Cawley Jr.

"After finding out that the truck was a 1930, the same year that Homestead Roofing was established, we worked out a deal and swapped the truck for a new roof. It took eleven months to have the truck restored to its original state, featuring Homestead Roofing's colors and logo."

Steady Business

The "old" truck may be still running strong, but how has Homestead aged in a business that is greatly impacted by market fluctuations in the construction industry? In a down economy, there's generally less building, which pushes material prices up.

Like many other roofers, Homestead is not immune to skyrocketing prices.

"One of the biggest challenges that we've encountered within the past two years has been the increase of all asphalt-based products, which are most of our materials," the younger Cawley said.

"Last year, during the oil crises, all asphalt-based products went up over 80% and of course, once prices go up on materials, they don't come back down."

So, with that being said, how is Homestead faring overall in a troubled economy?

"Considering the economic situation right now, business has been steady," Cawley Jr. reported.

He speculated that Homestead's position as an established roofing leader in the state, along with the highly-trained staff have enabled them to maintain business when competitors fell.

"People are now looking for established companies who will still be in business when the next phase of the economy begins," Cawley Jr. said.

"People want more confidence in who they choose to do work on their homes. They want to know that we'll always be here for them. And we will."

What's different about Homestead

While many roofing companies use cheap, often foreign laborers with limited experience, Homestead employ 25-30 people at any given time, all of which are highly trained and skilled, Cawley Jr. said.

"And most staff have been with the company for over 15 years," he stated proudly.

Cawley Jr. said the workers have health insurance, work in safe environments, and these factors help retain employees where others experience high turnover.

The Homestead owner also cautioned homeowners to know who they're working with when they choose contractors–some don't even carry proper insurance needed to work, he said.

"It's too bad that some of these homeowners don't understand the risk they are taking when they hire such contractors," he said.

By contrast, Cawley says Homestead has all of the proper insurance, and as a year-round service company, it is available to hop to the scene of any emergency that may arise, at any hour of the day.

While the roofing company does reach out to find business on television, YouTube and yes, Patch, no medium has been as effective as the tried-and-true – word of mouth.

"It's the best form of advertising," wife Eileen Cawley said.

Jerry chimed in: "Our local customers have been very loyal to us and we appreciate their business always!"

Editor's note: As mentioned, Homestead Roofing does advertise on Patch. Homestead did not write this article or have any say in its reporting, editing, or production. The topic was chosen and the content was produced by our editorial staff.